Karnataka to seek Unesco tag for Srirangapatna, Belur-Halebid

BENGALURU: After failed attempts to get the Unesco World Heritage Site tag for Deccan Sultanate monuments in North Karnataka, the state government is looking to try its luck down south. Dossiers are being prepared to push some monuments in the island town of Srirangapatna in Mandya along with the famed temples of Belur and Halebid in Hassan for the prized status. T Venkatesh, commissioner, department of archaeology, museums and heritage, said while they will continue to seek the tag for Deccan Sultanate monuments this year as well, a decision has been taken to send detailed proposals seeking World Heritage Site status for the Srirangapatna and Belur-Halebid monuments too. “They have a grand history and unique architecture,” he added. A senior official with the department said Srirangapatna hosts a beautiful representation of defence architecture in Hindu and Islamic traditions. “Starting from the Hoysalas to the Vijayanagar Empire to the reigns of Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan, the island town has been a centre of great historic, religious and cultural significance. The monuments here display a coexistence of different architectural and decorative elements in Indian, Indo-Islamic and British styles imbibed under various rulers. Such a mix is hard to find in other places in India,” he explained. The 12th century temples of Belur-Halebid, described as poetry in stone, were in fact part of a tentative 2014 list to secure the Unesco tag but failed to make it to the final list. “The structures display exquisite intricacy of stone architecture in Hoysala style. Many experts have appreciated the detailing in ornamentation, clothing and dynamic movement of human and animal figures,” said another official.

In September 2018, Karnataka along with Telangana had proposed “Monuments and Forts of Deccan Sultanate” spread over three districts of Karnataka (Bidar, Kalaburagi and Vijayapura) and Hyderabad, to the Archaeological Survey Of India for the World Heritage tag. The monuments included Gol Gumbaz in Vijayapura and the Bidar fort. But they didn’t find mention in the final list. Archaeology commissioner Venkatesh said it’s a continuous process and there’s no need to lose hope. “With better dossiers and presentations, we hope for the tag for at least one more group of monuments this year,” he added.